1. (noun)battle, conflict, fight, engagement a hostilemeeting of opposing military forces in the course of a war
"Grant won a decisive victory in the battle of Chickamauga"; "he lost his romantic ideas about war when he got into a real engagement"
2. (noun)struggle, battle an energetic attempt to achieve something
"getting through the crowd was a real struggle"; "he fought a battle for recognition"
3. (noun)conflict, struggle, battle an openclash between two opposing groups (or individuals)
"the harder the conflict the more glorious the triumph"--Thomas Paine; "police tried to control the battle between the pro- and anti-abortion mobs"
4. (verb)battle, combat battle or contend against in or as if in a battle "The Kurds are combating Iraqi troops in Northern Iraq"; "We must combat the prejudices against other races"; "they battled over the budget"